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Three incumbent lawmakers in the General Assembly fended off challengers in runoff elections throughout Georgia.

Unofficial returns Tuesday show that Republican state Sen. Bill Heath of Bremen beat challenger Bill Carruth of Dallas. Heath won nearly 55 percent of the vote in the GOP runoff compared to 45 percent for Carruth.

Heath chairs the Senate Finance Committee and served on a panel that overhauled parts of the state's tax code this year.

Meanwhile, Democratic state Sen. Gail Davenport took 54 percent of the vote against former lawmaker Gail Buckner, winning the race. Both candidates are from Jonesboro.